Why it works: Mushroom and sherry are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,176 recipes. Both carry 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol, which smells smoky, clove. The science ↓
Oysters À LA D’Uxelles
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the oysters
Clean oysters, heat to boiling point, and drain.
Reserve liquor and strain through double thickness of cheesecloth; there should be three‑fourths cup.
Make the sauce
Cook butter and mushrooms five minutes, add flour, and oyster liquor gradually; then cook three minutes.
Add seasonings, oysters, egg yolk, and sherry wine.
Serve
Serve on zephyrettes or pieces of toasted bread.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Oyster | 6 medium (84g) | 81 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Wine | 2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml) | 25 |
| Mushrooms | 1/2 cup sliced (35g) | 15 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Cayenne | 1 tsp (1.8g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Mushroom + sherrytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,176 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol (smoky, clove).
-
Mushroom + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,525 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
-
Mushroom + winetop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,632 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-propylphenol (allspice, anise).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Oyster + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,184 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Oysters
- Provide the main flavor and tender texture of the dish.
- Butter
- Enriches the sauce and carries the mushroom flavor.
- Flour
- Thickens the oyster liquor into a smooth, cohesive sauce.
- Egg yolk
- Adds richness and helps bind the sauce as it is added.
- Mushrooms
- Contribute earthy flavor and moisture to the sauce.
The step that matters
Adding the egg yolk. Egg yolk thickens through gentle heat; if the sauce is too hot when it is added, the yolk can scramble and turn grainy, so it should be stirred in off the heat or over low heat.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (oyster, mushroom, butter, flour, egg, sherry, wine):
- Plumfits about as well
- Grapefits about as well
- Figfits about as well
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against oyster, mushroom, butter, flour, egg, sherry, wine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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